


Terra's Mark of Mastery

by TerraXIII



Series: The life and love of Terra and Aqua [2]
Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-23 14:58:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18552097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TerraXIII/pseuds/TerraXIII
Summary: Terra must learn to deal with the scars left by Xehanort after the end of the Keyblade War





	Terra's Mark of Mastery

_There are always victims of wars, and scars don’t have to be physical to have been afflicted. A scar left on the heart can last longer than any physical scar. The Keyblade War left many a scar on the survivors, some more deeper than others. Especially on one particular man,  an unwilling victim to the atrocities of Xehanort._

 

“You thought you could escape me unscathed, boy?” A familiar raspy voice said.

“We are a part of you. Everything we have done was because of you.” Another familiar voice stated, much deeper and younger than the first.

“The destruction of worlds. The devouring of hearts. You thought you could escape the darkness? Fool. Darkness is the hearts true essence.” Another voice chimed in. The voices started to echo and intermingle together, a vortex that made it difficult to breathe. Before finally….

Terra sat up with a gasp, panting heavily as he looked around the darkened room, lit only by the moonlight. He lifted a hand to his forehead as his blue eyes shifted to the bed. Pulling his hand away, he could see the sweat glistening off his calloused palm. His labored breathing slowly returned to a normal pace as he felt movement in the bed next to him.

“Terra?” Aqua asked sleepily, “What's wrong, honey?” She asked her husband as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, pushing herself off of the mattress so she could get a better look at the man next to her.

“Nothing, hun. Don’t worry. Just go back to sleep.” He tried to assure her with a half-confident smile, reaching to brush her face with his dry hand as not to alarm her.

“Is it the nightmares again?” She asked as she leaned her head into the rough hand that stroked her cheek.

“It’s nothing you need to worry about. Just go back to sleep.” Terra said as he gulped, hoping to try and avoid the conversation. He had told her about them once and now it’s all she seemed to worry about when they awoke in the middle of the night. He started to regret telling her, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

“It’s not nothing, Terra. These have been going on for months. Even before the wedding, Maybe we should consult Master Yen Sid about it.” Aqua said, concern clearly reflected in her voice.

“I said, it’s fine, Aqua. I’ll get over them. Now let’s just get back to sleep.” Terra said firmly, a sign that he clearly didn’t want to talk about it anymore. He laid back down in bed, turning his back on his wife. He pulled the covers up to show that he was clearly done discussing the situation.

With a sigh, Aqua laid back down in the bed herself, turning her back on her husband. She held the covers tightly against her, pulling them up over her shoulders. Terra would lay there, awake, listening as his wife slowly slid off to sleep, his thoughts drifting to what the nightmares could mean. They had been occurring since Xehanort’s defeat at the Keyblade Graveyard, but as of late they had only grown in intensity and frequency. He could only hope that they were not a sign of what was to come.

 

_A few days later….._

“Heyah! Ha!” Terra exclaimed as he clashed with Ven in the training field. The sound of metal bashing against metal echoed throughout as the two traded blows, each looking for an opening that they could exploit. They clashed once more before propelling each other halfway across the field.

“You’ve gotten better, Ven. Must have been all that traveling that you did.” Terra said with a smile as he looked across the makeshift arena to his young friend.

“Well, if I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’ve gotten rusty.” Ventus teased as he kept bobbing his body in place.

“Oh, that’s it. You’re on.” Terra chuckled as he rushed across the dirt and grass pitch clashing once more with his younger friend. He clenched his jaw as Ventus started to push the older man back, his upper hand starting to disappear second after second. Once more he pushed the younger man away, keeping his hand around the hilt of his keyblade.

A feeling started to rumble in his chest, an all too familiar feeling. He could feel the tingling on his arm. Like electricity was racing across his skin.

 _“No, not this again,”_ He thought as he took his eyes off of Ven, looking towards his left arm. That’s when he felt a hard smack on his head, and stars appeared in his vision. Stumbling back, he released his keyblade and put his hand on the wound, feeling it throbbing.

“Terra? Terra!” Ven’s voice sounded faint and distant, slowly coming into focus. “Are you alright? I am so sorry! I thought you would have blocked that. Are you bleeding? Do I need to get Aqua?”

“No, no. I’m fine, Ven. I’m fine.” Terra said, attempting to reassure his friend, he could feel the rumbling again in his chest, like a storm that was rising up. He had to keep it in check, he thought he had it in check.

“Terra, you’re bleeding. I think I should go get Aqua.” Ventus said rather worriedly as he went to put his arm out.

“I said I’m fine, Ven!” Terra growled as he glared at the youth, anger flowing from his mouth, leaving the younger male speechless.

“I, I’m sorry.” Ven said with a bow with his head, “I, I’m gonna go.” He stuttered as he turned on his heels and started to run the path back to the castle, tears flowing down his cheeks.

Regret filled Terra’s chest as he watched his friend run away from him. He lifted his arm to attempt to reach out for him but noticed a familiar sensation surrounding his hand. A dark mass swirled around his hand and arm, causing him to retract it. His eyes stared, a mixture of horror and disbelief that this was happening.

“What’s going on?” Terra muttered to himself as he hung his head, looking at the ground.

 

_A couple of days later…._

“Hey, Aqua. What’s for dinner?” Ven asked as he sat at the table, playing with Chirithy.

“Making grilled chicken, rice, and broccoli. Have you washed your hands?” Aqua asked as she stood at the kitchen counter, finishing dinner preparations. As she was getting the plates down from the cabinet, Terra walked into the kitchen.

“Hey, hun. Need me to do anything?” Terra asked as he walked over to Aqua.

“Sure, if you want to… What happened to your hair?!” Aqua screamed as she turned around to look at her husband.

“M, my hair?” he asked as he reached up and ran his hands through his long hair, wondering what was wrong with his wife.

“T, Terra. It’s you, right? You’re really Terra.” Ven asked worriedly as he stood up at the table, leaning forward on his arms. Fear was clearly reflected in his blue eyes as he looked at his older brother.

“I, it’s me, Ven. I swear. What’s going on? Why are you guys looking at me like that?” Terra quizzed the other two as he looked between them, concern growing in his voice. Aqua slowly walked over with a reflective glass cup, handing it to her husband. Terra took the glass and moved it around till he could get a good enough view on it. “Oh, no.”

Terra’s hair had flattened against his head, from the shower, but that’s not what scared everyone. It had turned silver. He could understand why they were frightened now. The last time he had silver hair was when he had been possessed by Xehanort, and during that time he had almost killed his loved ones.

With shaky hands, he slowly put the glass on the counter and put his hand to his head. No, not again. He couldn’t go through that again. Not now. He felt a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look towards the owner suddenly.

“Terra, it’s ok. As long as you are you.” Aqua said as she placed her hand on Terra’s arm, trying to calm him. It sounded to Terra that she was actually afraid of him, causing him to gulp and visibly shake.

“Aqua, what, what's happening to me?” He stuttered as he looked towards his wife, fear evident in his eyes.

“I, I don’t know, But we’ll figure this out. I swear.” Aqua tried to comfort him, “Maybe we should go see Master Yen Sid.”

“That, that’s probably a good idea,” Terra said as he looked between Aqua and Ven.

 

_At the Mysterious Tower…._

Aqua and Terra made their way up the tower steps in silence, having barely said a word to each other on the flight over here on their Keyblade Gliders. The tension between them felt even more awkward as they enter the room and saw Master Yen Sid behind his desk, and Sora and his friends on the other side.

“Uh, Master? Are we interrupting?” Aqua asked as she looked around the room, her hand still on the doorknob.

“No, not at all. I was just about to put Sora through another Mark of Mastery exam, as per Merlin’s recommendation.” Master Yen Sid said as he looked between the newcomers and his other guest.

“Is everything ok?” Kairi asked as she looked at the newcomers rather concerned, she felt like something was different but she couldn’t place it.

“Uh, Terra. Why is your hair silver?” Riku questioned, a nervous tone creeping into his voice.

Sora’s and Kairi’s eyes opened wide as they looked between Riku and Terra noticing the difference in their friend. Fear started to reflect in their eyes as they backed away from the newcomers.

“Ease, my young friends. I can sense it is still Terra. Though I do wonder what has brought on this change.” Yen Sid said as he stroked his beard, looking towards Terra.

“That’s why we came to see you, Master. We thought maybe you might know.” Aqua said as she walked into the room, alongside her husband. “He seemed fine one moment, and then the next he comes into the room looking like this.”

“But are you still you, Terra?” Sora asked as he cocked his head to the side, looking up at the taller youth.

“Yeah, I’m still me, Sora. But at the same time, I feel like I’m not. And it’s scaring me.” Terra said as he looked at the other keyblade wielder.

“It seems to me, you still the scars from our fight with the Dark Seekers. I think it’s time to deal with that. You and Sora will both be undergoing a Mark of Mastery exam of my choosing. Aqua and Riku will oversee the trials alongside me. Am I understood?” Yen Sid said, staring hard at the young man.

“Y, yes Master,” Terra said as he took a step back, feeling the weight of the old man’s words ringing in his chest, soothing the darkness that had been building. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and opened them back up, having calmed down. Sora, excitedly, ran over and patted Terra on the back.

“Don’t worry. We got this.” The youth said as he smiled and gave a thumbs up to Terra. Terra couldn’t help but smile, an effect Sora had on people.

“Yeah, we got this,” Terra said with a nod, and a smile. Aqua looked at the exchange and smiled warmly, seeing that Terra was regaining a bit of himself.

“Now, we shall begin,” Yen Sid said as he stood up and walked from behind his desk. Closing his eyes and holding out his hands, the room started to fill different as magic seemed to fill the space. Two pink portals appeared in front of the group, floating in the air. The master opened his eyes and put his hands into his sleeves. “These portals will take you to a special location. There you both will partake in the exam. We will be able to monitor your progress from here.” He stated as he looked around the room.

Terra and Sora nodded as they walked up to the portals. Putting their hands out a warmth radiated from the orbs, and in a flash, they were gone.

“May your heart be your guiding key,” Master Yen Sid said.

“May your heart be your guiding key,” The others in the room echoed as they looked at the portals, visions of what was occurring inside slowly appearing on the domes.

 _“Please, be safe, Terra.”_ Aqua thought as she put her hand over her heart, moving to view the portal that Terra had entered.

 

_Terra’s portal….._

Terra blinked as the bright flash slowly dimmed, wincing from the intensity of it. Once his eyes had finally refocused, he looked up and around his new location.

“No,” Terra mouthed “Why here?”

His home lay in ruins around him. The sky had fallen dark, and chunks of the ground had been uprooted. He was back at the Land of Departure, but not his Land. This was what his home looked like after Master Xehanort had killed his master.

Terra slowly backed up from the ruined castle, shaking as the memories of his failures flooded his brain. That’s when he heard them, a sound as familiar as the sun on his face.

**_Bong! Bong! Bong!_ **

“Wha? What’s going….” He trailed off when an even chilling sound came from the ruins. Screams. The screams of Ven. The screams of Chirithy. The screams of…… oh God. “AQUA!” he yelled as he ran towards the building. “Ven! Chirithy!”

“Terra!” Ven’s voice cried.

“Terra!” Chirithy’s voice echoed.

“Terra!” Aqua’s voice followed, louder then Ven’s.

Terra ran up the steps and slammed his shoulders into the door, trying to open it. The heavy doors would not budge. Grunting and groaning, he kept pushing against the thick wood but it would not budge.

“Aqua! Ven! Chirithy!” He yelled as he pounded on the door. Their screams filled the air before it slowly grew silent. Terra’s eyes widened as the silence only lingered. “No,” he mouthed. “No!” he yelled as he slammed into the door one more time, finally causing it to open. He ran inside and up the stairs, rounding corners as fast as he could.

“Please be alive, please be alive.” He said under his breath as he ran up the remaining steps to the central chamber. He panted as he looked around the empty chamber. “It sounded like they were here.” He said under his breath as he kept looking around. Was he too late? Did he miss everything?

“You are too late.” A familiar voice said from behind him, making the hair on the back of his neck stand up. “I ended them, and now all that’s left is to end you and I shall be free.”

Terra’s chest began to hurt, his heart pounding rapidly. Grunting, he knelt on the floor as his heart continued to throb. Panting, he looked around. He couldn’t be here, could he? He had been sealed or defeated, or whatever. Wasn’t he?

“Thank you for returning my body to me.” The voice teased as a dark portal started to appear on the floor by the thrones. A cloaked figure walked out of the doorway. The newcomer raised his hand and closed the portal behind him, before making his way closer to Terra. “Now, surrender to me.”

“Never, Xehanort,” Terra growled as he looked up at his nemesis. The cloaked figure removed his hood, revealing it was indeed the Xehanort possed Terra. Terranort as the younger keyblade wielders had come to call him.

“Come now, how long do you think you can resist? I have lingered inside your heart since the end of the war. I will always linger, for as long as darkness resides in your heart, I shall be.” Terranort taunted as he removed the brown cloak, tossing it to the side.

“No, I won’t let you,” Terra tried to argue back as he held his chest.

“And who are you to argue back?” Terranort taunted as he kicked the youth, sending him flying backward. Terra grunted as he sat up, holding his chest in pain. Was this his exam? What was he supposed to do? Was he supposed to fight back? He needed to fight back.  Terra slowly stood up, grunting, before swinging his arm out and summoning Ends of the Earth to his hand.

“I’ll never let you take me over again,” Terra grunted as he charged at his darker self. Laughing maniacally, Terranort summoned No Name and brought it down heavily against his counterpart's weapon, sending sparks flying. Terra went for a sideswipe to his opponent's waist but was easily countered and sent backward. Panting, Terra charged forward, bringing his weapon over his head, before being countered again.

“Are you so sure of that? Have I not already taken over?” Terranort said with a chuckle as he looked at his opponent. “I mean, we did just murder your beloved friend. And your wife.” He taunted, sending Terra into a rage as he charged once more.

 

“Master, what’s going on? Why is Terranort there?” Aqua asked as she looked towards the Keyblade mentor. Her hand went to her chest, to cover her heart as fear started to creep in.

“Because this is what Terra must face if he is to become a Keyblade Master.” Yen Sid answered as he watched the globe, his hands inside of his robe. He turned his head to look into Sora’s portal, wanting to observe the exams of both keyblade wielders. “It seems Sora is facing a similar trial.” He commented as he removed one of his hands to stroke his beard. “Interesting.”

“Where do these portals go, Master?” Kairi asked as she turned her gaze away from Sora’s portal.

 

“Ugh!” Terra exclaimed as he slammed against a pillar, before falling to his knees. As he panted, he tried to shake his head to clear the dizziness. The room felt like it was getting darker and darker the longer this fight went on. How long had he been here? Minutes? Hours? There was no way of really telling.

“Giving up already, boy?” Terranort said as he walked towards his opponent, his footsteps the only sound in the large room. “Say the words and I win. I will own your body once more.” He taunted as he raised his free hand, a taunting smile on his face.

“Never,” Terra panted as he raised his head, to look at his darker self. “I’ll never let you have my heart.”

“Why resist? Haven’t you noticed? You’ve already given in. You just need to say the words.” Terranort said

“What, what do you mean?” The young wielder asked as he used his keyblade to prop himself back to his feet. Panting, he looked around the chamber, wondering what his darker self meant. The room had gotten darker that was for sure. He had been able to see the broken stained glass window earlier, but now he couldn’t. The thrones were starting to seep into the shadows as well, while the floor behind them was a bubbling pool of darkness.

“This. This is your heart. These ruins represent your biggest regret, the moment the flames of darkness in your heart were stoked the greatest. Xehanort only fanned the flames inside of you at the graveyard, but this. This is when you truly fell.” Terranort laughed as he leaned his head back.

“That, that’s not possible.” Terra panted as he glared at his opponent. “You’re lying!” He yelled.

“Am I? Look inside of yourself. You know it to be true. And once we kill your beloved friends, then we will truly be free. Now, give in!” The darkness shouted as he charged at the fallen wielder. Terra tried to deflect, but was too slow, being sliced across the chest and slammed into the railing.

 

“No!” Aqua exclaimed as she got closer to the orb and touched it, she was greeted with an electric shock causing her to pull her hand away. “Owe! What was that?”

“This portal will reject anyone but the owner, Terra must undergo this trial alone.” Yen Sid commented, sliding his hands inside of his robes.

“Sora!” Riku and Kairi both exclaimed as a light came from the other portal, causing the other two masters to turn and look. Sora materialized from his portal and landed on his feet looking around.

“Hey, guys. What did I miss?” Sora asked with a smile as he looked between his girlfriend and best friend. They both eagerly hugged Sora, before backing up slightly. “Where’s Terra?”

“He’s still taking his exam,” Kairi said as she looked towards the portal that Terra had entered.

“How’s he doing?” Sora asked as he looked at the people in the room. Their silence was his answer. Worried, Sora ran over to Terra’s portal and touched it, receiving the same electrical shock that Aqua had gotten. “Ow! What’s going on? We have to help him.”

“I’m afraid, we can not interfere, Sora. He is on his own, we can only observe.” Yen Sid said as he looked from Sora to the portal.

“Sora?” Terra’s voice echoed from the portal.

 

Terra continued clashing blades with Terranort, moving around the shrinking room, his anger fueling his desire to win. He had to defeat Terranort now. Here. He had to win. To protect Ven. To protect Aqua……

“Ow!” Aqua’s voice echoed through the chamber, causing the young man to quickly look up and look around.

“Aqua?” He breathed, wondering where her voice had come from. No, she wasn’t here. It had to be a trick. Terranort was trying to get to him. His opponent charged him again, making Terra raise his weapon to deflect the attack. Terranort’s attack came rapidly, making the veteran fighter go on the defensive, as he held his chest.

“Ow!” Sora’s voice echoed through the chamber, causing Terra to drop his guard long enough for Terranort to slam his keyblade on the man’s shoulder, causing him to yell and buckle to his knees.

“Sora?” Terra asked as he looked up, grunting. Why would his voice be here? He cared for the youth, but why was he suddenly hearing Sora’s voice?

“It’s over, boy. Give in.” Terranort demanded as he clenched his open hand, pointing No Name at the fallen warrior’s head.

“Never!” Terra exclaimed as he brought Ends of the Earth up to knock the keyblade away, creating some room between the two.

“Terra! We’re here! We’re rooting for you!” Sora’s voice echoed through the chamber, causing Terra to look up and around the chamber. Wondering what was going on, since Sora’s voice came back. “Don’t forget you defeated this guy before, you can do it again.”

“I can’t, he’s too strong. And I’m weak. I was too weak to protect my father. Too weak to protect my friends. Too weak to protect….” He said aloud, hanging his head. The darkness in the room felt crushing as Terranort’s laugh started to fill the chamber.

“Don’t you dare give up on me, Terra!” Aqua’s voice echoed through the chamber.

“Aqua?” Terra asked.

 

“Aqua?” Terra’s voice echoed from the portal.

Aqua grunted as she kept her hand on the orb, electricity arching through her gloved hand and back into the smooth surface. Sora had figured out that their voices could travel by touching the portal, and now it was her turn.

“Terra, don’t you dare give up on me. We’ve been through too much together to let it fall apart now. So get up!” Aqua yelled as she winched from the pain of the electricity. “And remember. I love you. AH!” she screamed as she felt pushed back by the electricity. Panting, she looked at the orb, hoping her words had reached Terra.

 

“It’s too late for you. Your fall to darkness is nearly complete. Give in to your fate!” Terranort said as he charged the wounded warrior, attempting to finish the fight.

 _“Is it really too late? Am I really worthy? Aqua………”_ Terra thought, his thoughts continued to dwell on the blunette as he held the hilt of his keyblade. A warmth started to bubble inside of his chest as he closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath he slowly began to stand up, as bright light started to cloud his view.

“What?!” Terranort exclaimed as he skidded to a stop halfway across the chamber. A bright light had begun to engulf his foe, causing the darkness to close his eyes and turn his head away. “What’s happening?”

The light began to fade slightly, revealing Terra engulfed in an aura of light. His wounds had healed and his eyes had filled with determination. He held his keyblade over his shoulder, with a confident smirk on his lips.

“You know, you helped me remember something. You're right, I am darkness. But you know what? I’m fine with that.” Terra said with confidence as he slowly walked towards Terranort. “Because I have a light, and she will always light my way back.” He said as he pointed his keyblade towards the embodiment of his darkness.

Growling, Terranort charged with No Name held over his head. Bringing down the deadly blade, Terra raised Ends of the Earth to deflect the attack.

“Game over, Terranort.” He said with a smirk as he propelled his opponent backward. Charging, he spun on his heel and brought his weapon to the enemy’s side. The darkness barely managing to block it before being propelled towards a pillar.

Grunting, he shook his head, looking up just in time for Terra to be on him propelling him into the air. Terra and his dark half clashed, their keyblades creating sparks and filling the room with the sounds of metal clashing. Terra gave one last push, sending his darkness up to smash into the ceiling. Landing on the ground, Terra hefted his keyblade over his head, causing it to grow and change shape.

“Ultima Cannon!” Terra said as a beam erupted from the end of his weapon, directing it towards the being above him. Terranort yelled as the attack impacted, breaking the ceiling around him and blasting straight into the cloudy sky.

Panting, the keyblade shrunk back to its normal size and returned to Terra’s hand as he looked up through the hole in the ceiling. The clouds began to part and rays of sunlight beamed into the ruined building, brightening up the world around him. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and relaxed, basking in the rays of the sun.

 

Aqua and the others backed up from the portal as Terra materialized from it in a flash of light, looking like his old self. Landing on the floor, he looked around the room with a smile.

“Hey, gang.” He said, before being quickly hugged by Aqua, causing the air to be knocked from him. The others cheered as they ran up to him and joined in on the hug. “You’re acting like I was gonna fail or something.” He chuckled as he embraced everyone in a hug.

Yen Sid had moved back to his desk, while the youths hugged it out, causing him to smile as he watched them embrace. Taking a seat, he coughed, reluctantly breaking up the emotional moment.

“Terra. Sora. If you would please step into the other room while I discuss the results of your exams with Master Aqua and Master Riku.” The elderly wizard said as he waved his hand toward the door to his left. Terra and Sora nodded before moving away from the group and opening the door to the room where the three good fairies had resided.

After what felt like an eternity, Kairi entered the room, causing Terra and Sora to jump up from their seats and looked at the princess.

“They’re ready for you.” She said with a serious tone, leading the two wielders back into the main room. The portals had disappeared, allowing Terra and Sora to move in front of the desk and stand before the Keyblade Masters. Riku and Aqua had moved to stand on either side of Yen Sid, all three with serious expressions on their faces.

“After much deliberation, we have come to an agreement.” Yen Sid started, closing his eyes and keeping his hands inside of his robes. “Sora, you have passed. Congratulations, you are a true Keyblade Master.”

Sora’s eyes widened and a grin spread across his cheeks, Terra smiled and patted the younger male on the back.

“Hey, congratulations, bud! I’m proud of you.” Terra said with a smile as he rubbed Sora’s head.

“Thanks,” Sora chuckled as he tried to escape Terra’s reach, causing both men to laugh. Aqua and Riku couldn’t help but smile and chuckle, before looking at each other and nodding. Yen Sid smiled and nodded towards Sora, before looking towards Terra, a serious expression overtaking his features.

“Terra, as for you,” He started, as the keyblade wielders turned back to him, somber expressions returning to their features. “while your exam took longer then Sora’s and came with heavier consequences, it is after much consideration we have decided….” He paused, a frown coming over both Aqua’s and Riku’s faces, both of them looking away. “That you have passed. Congratulations. You are a true Keyblade Master.” Yen Sid finished with a smile across his face.

Sora jumped in excitement and patted Terra on the back, as Aqua and Riku turned towards their friends with smiles on their faces. Terra stood their speechless as it sunk in that he had finally passed his Mark of Mastery exam.

“Way to go, Terra. I knew you could do it!” Sora exclaimed as he patted the older man’s back. The look of surprise on Terra’s face caused Aqua and Riku to giggle, having been in on the joke. A few seconds later, Terra’s face changed into an expression of joy as he looked at Sora.

“I did? I did it!” He exclaimed as he threw his arms up in the air. Laughing, he high fived Sora and looked around the room.

“Congratulations, Terra. You deserve it.” Aqua said as she came around the desk, and touched his shoulder tenderly.

“Thank you, Aquange…...” Terra blushed, realizing he almost called Aqua her pet name in front of the others. He had turned around to face her, and take her hands tenderly into his.

“Awww, is the big guy embarrassed?” Riku asked as he walked around from behind the desk. “What were you gonna call her, Terra?”

“Yeah, come on. No need to be shy.” Kairi teased as she leaned in towards the couple.

“Yeah, come on, rock bear,” Aqua said, using one of the pet names she used for him.

“Aq, Aquangel,” Terra said as he turned his head away from everyone, a deep red blush coming to his cheeks. The others started to giggle, enjoying their teasing of their friend. Even Yen Sid was chuckling slightly.

 

Terra and Aqua landed back in Land of Departure, up on the hillside where they use to train. Night had fallen, and they held hands as they made their way to the path down the mountain. Before even getting to the path, Aqua stopped and looked down, making Terra stop in his tracks.

“Aqua? What's wrong?” He asked as he turned towards her and walked back over to her.

“I, I thought I was going to lose you during the exam,” Aqua said as she looked up at him. “You were getting beaten so bad. I, I was scared.” She stuttered as tears started to well in her eyes. Terra quickly hugged the blunette, wrapping his arms around her tightly.

“I wasn’t going to let that happen. Not while I still had you. Don’t you remember what I said back at the graveyard?” He asked as he looked down into her eyes, cupping her chin in his fingers. “You never stopped lighting my way through the darkness.” He said with a tender smile. Aqua hugged him tight as she buried her head in his chest.

“There’s, there’s another reason I was scared to lose you.” Aqua stuttered as she composed herself.

“Hm, what’s that?” Terra asked as he tilted his head to the side, looking down at his wife.

“I’m……”

 

“WWWWWWWHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTT?!”


End file.
